The Japanese government is considering a proposal to make it easier for registered crypto exchanges to list digital assets in the local retail trading market.
Sources quoted in Bloomerg said that if the new rules are passed, exchanges that have registered with the Financial Services Agency (FSA) would be able to list certain assets without performing a lengthy screening process.
Digital assets that have been listed for more than six months on at least three domestic exchanges would be exempted from additional screening. For example, exchanges would find it easier to list Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) if the proposal passes.
There has not yet been a final decision on the rule change.
Current listing rules require prospective coins to undergo an extensive screening process which can take over six months to complete. Members of the Japan Virtual and Crypto Exchange Association (JVCEA) have complained that the stringent screening process has precluded the $1 trillion Japanese crypto industry from growing in a significant way.
Members of the JVCEA have reportedly argued that changing the existing rules to allow for expedient processing could increase Japanese involvement in the global crypto markets.
As of now, Coincheck and GMO Coin have 17 listed coins each, making them the biggest exchanges in Japan by number of listings. Japanese exchanges have lagged far behind global exchanges which have coins listed by the hundreds in the case of top exchanges such as Coinbase and Binance.
The proposed rules come at an interesting time as both Coinbase and FTX have entered the competitive Japanese crypto market with subsidiaries registering crypto exchanges.
Related: Major crypto exchanges eye Asian market amid growing regulatory clarity
On Feb. 2, Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX exchange acquired Liquid Group, the operator of the Japanese registered Quoine crypto exchange. Quoine will eventually eventually “integrate FTX’s existing products and services into its own offerings.”
Last August, Coinbase partnered with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG) to launch a branch of its exchange. The partnership with MUFG provides users with a fiat on-ramp and off-ramp.
The information on or accessed through this website is obtained from independent sources we believe to be accurate and reliable, but Decentral Media, Inc. makes no representation or warranty as to the timeliness, completeness, or accuracy of any information on or accessed through this website. Decentral Media, Inc. is not an investment advisor. We do not give personalized investment advice or other financial advice. The information on this website is subject to change without notice. Some or all of the information on this website may become outdated, or it may be or become incomplete or inaccurate. We may, but are not obligated to, update any outdated, incomplete, or inaccurate information.
You should never make an investment decision on an ICO, IEO, or other investment based on the information on this website, and you should never interpret or otherwise rely on any of the information on this website as investment advice. We strongly recommend that you consult a licensed investment advisor or other qualified financial professional if you are seeking investment advice on an ICO, IEO, or other investment. We do not accept compensation in any form for analyzing or reporting on any ICO, IEO, cryptocurrency, currency, tokenized sales, securities, or commodities.
Specter Solutions has integrated the Liquid Bitcoin sidechain network into its desktop and hardware wallet solutions and added support for Blockstream’s hardware wallet Jade, according to a release sent to Bitcoin Magazine. The integration will enable Specter users to transact in the Liquid Network with Jade and Specter hardware wallets.
“At Blockstream, we believe self-custody is a fundamental element of Bitcoin,” said Samson Mow, Chief Strategy Officer at Blockstream. “Running a node, whether it is Bitcoin itself or a layer-2 solution like Liquid or Lightning, unlocks the full potential of the asset and the ability to self-bank. We look forward to continuing our work with Specter to help make running a node more accessible and enjoyable for the everyday Bitcoiner.”
Liquid is a federated sidechain of Bitcoin, meaning it is a separate blockchain network, different from Lightning which runs on top of the Bitcoin blockchain as a layer-2 solution. Blockstream created Liquid to empower traders and exchanges with faster and confidential transactions and the ability to issue digital assets at the expense of a few tradeoffs.
Liquid allows bitcoin to flow between the Liquid and Bitcoin networks with a two-way peg. Bitcoin used in the Liquid network is referred to as L-BTC, and its verifiably equivalent amount of BTC is managed and secured by the network’s members, called functionaries.
However, functionaries can be interpreted as requiring trust in third parties because although full nodes can ensure functionaries’ correct behavior by verifying transactions and peg-ins, only functionaries have the power to secure the network.
The uprising of different options for users to interact with and leverage the Bitcoin network is a net positive, but the tradeoffs are essential to understand. Liquid is a meaningful tool for a particular set of use cases, primarily for exchanges and high-frequency traders. Still, everyday users might be put off by the introduction of trust and permission into pegging in and out of a BTC IOU — which goes against some principles of Bitcoin.
Liquid Global has raised $120 million in debt financing from FTX.
The funding comes a week after Liquid suffered a major crypto hack, resulting in $97 million in losses.
Sam Bankman-Fried said FTX was “proud to announce” its capital extension to Liquid.
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Liquid has closed a $120 million debt financing round from FTX.
Liquid Receives FTX Bailout
Japanese crypto exchange Liquid Global has raised $120 million in debt financing from fellow exchange FTX, the exchange announced Thursday. The exchange did not reveal specifics of the loan agreement.
The funding comes a week after Liquid suffered a major crypto hack. The loan will help cover Liquid’s recent losses, compensate users, and supply new capital for the exchange’s operations.
On Aug. 19, an unknown hacker drained the exchange’s wallet of over $97 million in various assets, including BTC, ETH, XRP, and TRX.
Yesterday, Liquid stated it would compensate the hack victims, and reassured that there would be “no impact on user balances.”
All crypto deposits are currently suspended, and the trading platform has warned users to not transfer crypto to their wallet address until further notice.
In addition to the debt financing, the exchange revealed that it is pursuing “collaborative opportunities” with FTX.
Speaking on the news, Liquid Group COO Seth Melamed said:
“By collaborating with FTX, we see enormous opportunities to drive innovation and change the future of finance with blockchain technology.”
Sam Bankman-Fried, the CEO of FTX, said in a tweet that FTX was “proud to announce” its capital extension to Liquid. He wrote:
“We’ve admired what Liquid has been working towards: a leader in international cryptocurrency compliance, and one of the longest running exchanges in the ecosystem.
Liquid’s parent company, Quoine, was the one of the first exchanges to receive a license and operate in Japan under its Payment Services Act. Despite being a fully regulated exchange, the trading platform fell victim to two security attacks. Before last week’s hack, the exchange suffered an attack in November 2020.
The team did not specify their plans to improve the security infrastructure despite being hacked twice in the last one year.
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The information on or accessed through this website is obtained from independent sources we believe to be accurate and reliable, but Decentral Media, Inc. makes no representation or warranty as to the timeliness, completeness, or accuracy of any information on or accessed through this website. Decentral Media, Inc. is not an investment advisor. We do not give personalized investment advice or other financial advice. The information on this website is subject to change without notice. Some or all of the information on this website may become outdated, or it may be or become incomplete or inaccurate. We may, but are not obligated to, update any outdated, incomplete, or inaccurate information.
You should never make an investment decision on an ICO, IEO, or other investment based on the information on this website, and you should never interpret or otherwise rely on any of the information on this website as investment advice. We strongly recommend that you consult a licensed investment advisor or other qualified financial professional if you are seeking investment advice on an ICO, IEO, or other investment. We do not accept compensation in any form for analyzing or reporting on any ICO, IEO, cryptocurrency, currency, tokenized sales, securities, or commodities.
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Japanese Crypto Exchange Liquid Suffers $97M Hack
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Japanese cryptocurrency exchange Liquid has reported a security attack on its hot wallets.
While Liquid did not specify the amount that was stolen, the team shared the hacker’s crypto addresses.
This is the second incident in which Liquid’s infrastructure has been compromised.
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Japanese crypto exchange Liquid has announced that its hot wallets have been hacked.
Liquid Hacker Steals $84 Million
Liquid has been hacked.
The Japanese cryptocurrency exchange Liquid reported a security attack on its hot wallets in an Aug. 19 tweet. Liquid has been operating as a centralized exchange since 2014.
Important Notice:
We are sorry to announce that #LiquidGlobal warm wallets were compromised, we are moving assets into the cold wallet.
We are currently investigating and will provide regular updates. In the meantime deposits and withdrawals will be suspended.
— Liquid Global Official (@Liquid_Global) August 19, 2021
While it did not say how much funds were stolen, it shared crypto the hacker’s addresses.As per the transactions made by the addresses used by the hacker, the stolen assets are worth over $84 million.
The hacker’s Ethereum address contains about $69 million worth of ETH and other ERC-20 tokens, while the Bitcoin wallet holds 107.42 BTC valued at about $4.8 million. A further $10 million worth of XRP and TRX has been sent out from the wallet addresses originally shared by Liquid.
At the same time, it appears that the hacker was unable to transfer all of the assets from the exchange’s hot wallets. The unhacked portion of the funds is now being transferred to its cold wallets, the exchange said.
Most centralized crypto exchanges maintain two types of wallets: hot and cold. Hot wallets are connected to the web for allowing quick deposits and withdrawals and can be prone to hacks.In comparison, cold wallets are not exposed to the web and offer much stronger security against attacks.
The incident is one of the biggest centralized exchange hacks of 2021. Since the so-called “DeFi summer” of 2020, crypto attacks have largely involved decentralized exchanges and yield farms. Earlier this month, an attacker stole a record $611 million in crypto through an exploit in Poly Network, before returning almost all of the funds.
This is the second time Liquid’s infrastructure was compromised. On Nov. 13 last year, the exchange confirmed a hacker had gained access to its employees’ email accounts and compromised the company’s network.
At the time, the exchange asked users to change their passwords and reset 2FA Keys. Liquid is yet to clarify whether the prior incident was connected in any way to today’s hack.The exchange said it was still investigating the security incident and will provide regular updates.
Many other large Japanese exchanges have suffered attacks over the years. Notable hacks include the infamous Mt. Gox attack of 2014 when 850,000 Bitcoin worth $450 million at the time were stolen. Coincheck was also hit by another notable incident in 2018; the attackers made off with $500 million.
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The information on or accessed through this website is obtained from independent sources we believe to be accurate and reliable, but Decentral Media, Inc. makes no representation or warranty as to the timeliness, completeness, or accuracy of any information on or accessed through this website. Decentral Media, Inc. is not an investment advisor. We do not give personalized investment advice or other financial advice. The information on this website is subject to change without notice. Some or all of the information on this website may become outdated, or it may be or become incomplete or inaccurate. We may, but are not obligated to, update any outdated, incomplete, or inaccurate information.
You should never make an investment decision on an ICO, IEO, or other investment based on the information on this website, and you should never interpret or otherwise rely on any of the information on this website as investment advice. We strongly recommend that you consult a licensed investment advisor or other qualified financial professional if you are seeking investment advice on an ICO, IEO, or other investment. We do not accept compensation in any form for analyzing or reporting on any ICO, IEO, cryptocurrency, currency, tokenized sales, securities, or commodities.
See full terms and conditions.
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— Liquid Global Official (@Liquid_Global) August 19, 2021
Liquid has not yet confirmed exactly how much has been taken, but based on the related addresses, more than 107 BTC, 9,000,000 TRX, 11,000,000 XRP, and almost $60 million worth of ETH and ERC-20 tokens appear to have been taken by the hackers.
There are reports that the Ethereum wallet compromised held deposits from Celsius Network. Withdrawals and deposits have now been suspended on Liquid Exchange
Kucoin promptly responded to the hack by blacklisting the addresses involved in the hack, according to a tweet from the CEO of Kucoin.
We are aware of the #LiquidGlobal security incident, and the hacker’s addresses have been added to the blacklist of #KuCoin. Hope everything is OK. https://t.co/IasscGItZH